TAT, otherwise known as The Astonishing Tribe, is now showing off a hybrid 2D-3D user interface called Horizon 2D-3D. The company says that offering both views, seamlessly accessibly by a tilt of the phone utilizing the build-in accelerometer or gyroscope, would help users to either focus in on detailed information or to get a lot of information at the same time.

In terms of mapping, while many providers such as Google and Bing offer traditional 2D and 3D maps, according to TAT, “Clearly, there are advantages to both 2D and 3D maps, and they coexist side by side in many map solutions. The problem however, is that users risk losing their visual points of reference when switching between 2D and 3D views.” In the mapping demo, TAT shows “2D and 3D maps can be combined into a singular application where layout alterations are seamless and dynamic”

The idea can be expanded to other apps beyond mapping and TAT is also showing it off in a contacts app.